NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Five student-athletes, including a hat trick by senior Sasha Gray, all contributed in Vanderbilt soccer’s first home win of the season.
“We wanted to come out hard today after Thursday’s game against Florida State, said Gray. “With the confidence that we had today, everyone played great. I just want to thank Darren (Ambrose) for letting me go up top after playing left back. It was just a lot of fun for me today.”
An 8-0 shutout over the Jackson State Tigers, the Commodore offense earned some confidence after a hard 3-0 loss to No. 1 Florida State. Of the five scoring Commodores, newcomers generated four goals. To up the ante, goals number one, three and five were the first collegiate goals for freshmen Grace Jackson, Hannon Eberts and Sydney O’Donnell.
Seven minutes into Sunday’s matinee, Jackson, a native of Atlanta, Ga. capitalized off a fantastic pass by O’Donnell. A hard worker who made two shots in prior competitions, the leadoff goal was the first of hopefully many in Jackson’s Commodore career.
Coming into the game, striking first was high up on Vanderbilt agenda. Head coach Darren Ambrose and his staff saw JSU nearly level the score against MTSU by halftime on Thursday in a neutral site game hosted by VU.
The lead quickly grew as defender Danae O’Halloran advanced high up the right side of the field and connected a beautiful cross to Jackie Welch. Welch tapped the ball with her right foot under the JSU goalkeeper as she drove to the ground. The 2-0 advantage was Welch’s second career goal for the black and gold.
The `Dores edged in one last goal before the half concluded as Hannon Eberts’ speed allowed the freshman to breakaway from the Tiger defense. One on one against the goalkeeper, Eberts placed the ball high into the back of the net, securing a comfortable Commodore lead.
By the time the `Dores entered into the locker room, the squad led 16 shots to the Tiger’s one; a feat accomplished by making concrete passes and holding possession for most of the period. Resume play, VU made several changes on the field to allow in-game experience for some Commodore reserves.
Coming in at the half, Taiana Tolleson made her first Commodore appearance in goal. After 25 minutes of second half play, GK Lauren Demarchi over for the remainder of the matchup.
Gray, a senior, found her offensive rhythm as Ambrose allowed the defender some time up top. Gray came into the matchup with five career goals, and nearly doubled that amount with her first hat trick.
Continuing to hound the JSU backline, O’Donnell converted a missed attempt by Welch into her first collegiate goal, hammering the ball into the back of the Tiger’s net for the 5-0 lead.
Six minutes later and Eberts’ speed was back at it for the Dores. The Somers, NY native secured her second breakaway goal, for her third of the season. Gray became the Commodores’ leading scorer, finalizing the 8-0 score by scoring in the 62nd and 67th minutes. VU’s last hat trick came in 2013, as Cheyna Williams found the goal three times against Milwaukee on Sept. 8th.
VU stays at home next weekend, hosting Murray State at 5:00 pm CT on Thursday, Sept. 1st. Fans will enjoy a joint soccer/football tailgate. On Sept. 4th, San Francisco comes to town for a 12:00 pm CT Sunday showdown.
